The League of the Strong NGO, with technical support from UN Women in Ukraine and funding from the UN Women Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF), is providing grants to 19 NGOs to implement advocacy campaigns in nine regions of Ukraine. These campaigns aim to improve mental health, create an accessible environment, protect the rights of wounded civilians and support people with disabilities. Thanks to these initiatives, Ukrainians are receiving the help and support they need to develop an inclusive society.
“It is not easy to work on changes in society alone. It is a long process of advocacy that requires a lot of knowledge and skills. That’s why one of the tasks of the League of the Strong is to support NGOs working for people with disabilities in their activities and to promote their development in various ways. We train, advise, and financially support organizations because we believe that only by working together can we achieve the desired result – a decent life for people with disabilities in Ukraine,” says Iryna Ageeva, Project Manager of the League of the Strong.
The Z.N.A.M.I. project provides financial support to public organizations working with people with disabilities. In addition to financial support, the League of the Strong organized individual consultations for the heads of organizations to develop scenarios for interaction with government agencies, provide examples of documents (requests, memoranda, letters, policy briefs, draft orders) and help them understand the algorithm for changing regulations.
The advocacy campaigns of the CSOs that received support from the Z.N.A.M.I. project cover Kyiv, Vinnytsia, Bucha, Brovary, Kharkiv, Uzhhorod, Berdychiv, Reni, Cherkasy and Kropyvnytsky. Read more about some of them in the article.
Support for children with epilepsy – NGO “Epiprosvita“
Epiprosvita is actively working to include the drug Frisium in the National List of Essential Medicines. Currently, children with epilepsy in Ukraine do not have access to the necessary medicines that are critical for their health and normal development. The Epiprosvita team has already achieved its first advocacy success – the approval of the Ministry of Health Order No. 884 on making the necessary changes to the list of essential medicines. The head of the organization also took part in the XXVIII Conference of the Ukrainian Anti-Epileptic League, where she emphasized the importance of access to Frisium for children with epilepsy.
Hearing screening for newborns – NGO “Vidchuj”
Vidchuvai lobbies for changes in the Ministry of Health Regulation No. 1144, which requires pediatricians to conduct hearing screening for newborns and infants. As part of the project, the team conducted a survey of parents who have experienced the consequences of the lack of diagnosis and confusion due to the lack of proper care. The organization also sent requests to all regions of Ukraine and hospitals for available statistics on children’s hearing screening and prepared an analytical report providing additional arguments for amending the decree.
Accessible Bucha – NGO “Active Rehabilitation Group“
People who use wheelchairs face many everyday difficulties: inconvenient entrances to buildings, lack of ramps, narrow doorways, inaccessible bathrooms and kitchens, and lack of elevators in high-rise buildings. The Active Rehabilitation Group is working to address these issues. The project supports an advocacy campaign aimed at including the service of arranging housing for people in wheelchairs in the “Accessible Bucha” program. The organization analyzed similar programs in 20 regions of Ukraine and offered ideas to the Bucha Mayor’s Office to create a local program to implement the national barrier-free strategy at the city level.
Transit supported accommodation for people with mental disabilities – NGO “USI”.
Teenagers with autism in the community often face difficulties in adapting to independent living and need specialized support. As part of its advocacy campaign, the organization organized a series of meetings with the Deputy Mayor for Humanitarian Affairs of Vinnytsia to discuss the possibility of including the social service “Transitional Supported Living for Persons with Mental Disabilities” in the current Comprehensive Municipal Social Policy Program and its further funding. A working group has now been established to prepare amendments to the program.
Accessibility of public toilets – NGO “Rodyna LH“
As part of its advocacy campaign, the organization monitors the accessibility of public toilets. According to them, new toilets that have the status of barrier-free and accessible are not always so. This is a problem for people with limited mobility. Therefore, the organization is initiating the creation of an information map that will contain the necessary details about the work of the toilets and the real state of accessibility.
Support for internally displaced persons with disabilities – NGO “Unbreakable”
Currently, the municipality of Brovary does not have any systematic measures to integrate and guarantee the rights of IDPs. The assistance provided is fragmented and ad hoc, and is mainly implemented through the initiatives of individual NGOs. As part of the advocacy campaign, the team of the organization “Unbreakable” conducted a study on the main problems of IDPs in the Brovary community and prepared a report with recommendations for developing a strategy to support them.
Physical Accessibility of the Hnivanska Community – NGO “Ray of Hope Center”
The advocacy project aims to increase the competence of community decision makers through a training seminar. The Ray of Hope Center also conducted an online survey among residents of the Hnivanska community and identified priority barriers for people with disabilities. The results will be used to develop a physical accessibility program.
Advocacy for the Rights of Citizens Affected by the War – Charitable Foundation “Development and Social Justice of Ukraine”
The project involves collecting and analyzing information on the needs of wounded civilians and developing solutions for local authorities to plan resources for assistance.
The Foundation held a public event where wounded civilians identified the main problems of war victims. These included the need for financial support, legal assistance to obtain the correct disability status, and difficulties in obtaining extracts from the URPTI. As part of the advocacy campaign, the Foundation began analyzing current legislation, prepared an analytical brief on the rights and benefits of war victims, and conducted a survey of wounded civilians. Based on the data obtained, the team developed proposals for the local authorities of Kharkiv.
“The League of the Strong” continues to support non-governmental organizations in their efforts to defend the rights and improve the living conditions of various categories of the Ukrainian population.
The Z.N.A.M.I. project is implemented with the technical support of UN Women in Ukraine and funded by the UN Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF).
This publication has been produced with the financial support of the United Nations Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF), but this does not imply that the views and contents expressed herein are officially endorsed or approved by the United Nations.
The United Nations Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF) is a flexible and responsive funding instrument that supports high-quality interventions that strengthen the capacity of local women to prevent conflict, respond to crises and emergencies, and seize key peacebuilding opportunities.